How to be Heard at Work

Being heard at work isn’t just about volume and frequency.

It’s about presence, intention, and the clarity of your message.

As smart, capable women, the issue isn’t that we don’t have good ideas — it’s that those ideas often aren’t being heard by the people that matter.

We’re not communicating in a way that lands.

One of my clients who works in a hospital environment was sharing this week that while she speaks up in meetings and on ward rounds, she finds no action is taken as a result. She finds herself following up further, or bringing up the same concerns the week meeting. This not only creates internal frustration, affecting relationships and using up emotional energy, it also reduces her productivity.

She’s committed to advancing her career and making a greater impact but is unsure what to do.

In an article in Harvard Business Review outlining the results of a survey about women’s voices in the workplaces, one of the respondents noted that often when we speak, our points are not backed up.

This is understandable, particularly in fast paced environments or where you might feel nervous about speaking and sharing an opinion.

However simply making a point leaves the listener hanging - they don’t have enough evidence to take action or to necessarily know what you want as a result of the point you are making.

If you can relate, you may like to think about how you can do this.

How can you back up the point you are making to help it land? And how can you make it clear what you want to happen as a result of the point you are making?

Your voice is your value. It’s worth backing yourself, and the points you are making.